Chocolate Chip & Banana Muffins

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Ingredients
1/4 cups sugar
1/2 stick (4 tbsp.) unsalted butter, melted
1 medium banana (3-4oz), overripe, mashed
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Equipment: 
muffin tin, paper or foil liners

Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 350° and line muffin tin with paper or foil liners.
2. In a bowl, combine the sugar, melted butter, vanilla extract, mashed banana and egg; mix thoroughly.
3. In another bowl, whisk flour with baking soda and salt.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until the batter is evenly moistened. Stir in the chocolate chips.
5. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake for about 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffins comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.
6. Let the muffins cool for 10 minutes before turning them out onto a rack to cool completely.
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Nutritional info: 8 servings (1 muffin)
    * Calories: 220
    * Fat: 11g Carbs: 29g (fiber: 1g) Protein: 3g

Oh-Wow! Butterscotch Cinnamon Sticky Buns with Raisins and Walnuts

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Ingredients
Dough:
* Milk, 1/2 cup, warm
* Yeast, dry, 1 package (1/4 oz)
* White Granulated Sugar, 1/4 cup
* Unsalted Butter, 3 Tbsp softened (1 stick total, divided into three parts)
* Egg, fresh, 1 large
* White flour, 2 cups, sifted (+ more for dusting)
* Salt, 1/2 tsp

Filling:
*Unsalted Butter, 2 Tbsp (melted) 
* Brown Sugar (light), 1/3 cup
* Cinnamon, ground, 2 tsp
* Raisins, 1 small box (1.5 oz)

Glaze:
* Brown Sugar (dark), 1/3 cup
* Unsalted Butter, 3 Tbsp
* Scotch (Whiskey), 3 tbsp (1.5fl oz)
* Condensed milk, 3 tbsp
* Vanilla Extract, 1/4 tsp
* Salt, 1/8 tsp
* Walnuts, 1 oz (or any kind of nuts)

Preparation
1. Make the Dough:
Heat the milk until warm.
In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, combine the warm milk and the yeast. Add the granulated sugar and 3 tbsp of softened butter and mix at medium speed until the butter is broken up, 1 minute.
Beat in the egg.
Add sifted flour and salt and mix at low speed until incorporated, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of the bowl. Increase the speed to medium and mix the dough for 2 minutes longer.
Scrape the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 30-40 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spray muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.

3. Make the Filling:
Melt 2 tbsp of butter in microwave.
In a small bowl, mix the light brown sugar with the cinnamon.

4. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough out into 1/4" thick rectangle. Brush the 2 tbsp of melted butter over the dough and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar.
Sprinkle with raisins.

Beginning at a long edge, roll up the dough as tightly as possible and pinch the seam. Cut the log into 6 or 8 2-inch pieces and set them in the muffin cups cut side up. Cover and let stand in a warm place (preheated stove top is ideal for that) for 30 minutes.

5. Bake the buns for 30 minutes, until they are golden brown.

6. Make the Glaze:
In a small saucepan, bring the dark brown sugar, salt, butter, Scotch and condensed milk to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat until thickened slightly, about 3 minutes.

7. Meanwhile, coarsely chop the walnuts. (If you wish you might toast them 10 minutes.) Take the buns out of the muffin pan.

8. Remove the glaze from the heat and stir in vanilla extract and chopped walnuts. Pour the glaze over the hot buns. Sprinkle with more nuts if you wish.
Let stand until the buns have soaked up some of the glaze and are cool enough to eat, about 20 minutes. Serve warm.
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Nutritional info: 6-8 servings (1 bun)
    * Calories: 390
    * Fat: 16g Carbs: 56g (fiber: 1.5g) Protein: 6g